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According to Canonical, the company behind popular Linux distribution Ubuntu, Spotify just made it super simple for subscribers to install the music-streaming app on Linux machines. The company has just released a Spotify "snap," a universal app package that works across Linux flavors.

Here's a statement that would have been unimaginable in previous years: Ubuntu has arrived in the Windows Store. As promised back in May, you can now download a flavor of the popular Linux distribution to run inside Windows 10. It won't compare to a conventional Ubuntu installation, as it's sandboxed (it has limited interaction with Windows) and is focused on running command line utilities like bash or SSH. However, it also makes running a form of Linux relatively trivial. You don't have to dual boot, install a virtual machine or otherwise jump through any hoops beyond a download and ticking a checkbox.

Microsoft made headlines at last year's Build developer conference when it announced that it would build support for the Bash shell and Ubuntu Linux binaries directly into Windows 10. Doing so enables devs to run command-line tools while building apps as well as allows power users to run limited instances of Linux directly on top of Windows without installing a virtual machine. Today, at this year's conference, the company one-upped itself and announced that it's expanding Linux support to include OpenSUSE and Fedora distributions.

Ubuntu-powered phones and tablets never quite took off the way Canonical, the Linux-based platform's creator, expected. Now the company is finally admitting defeat and ending all its mobile projects. In a blog post, Canonical founder Mark Shuttleworth has revealed that the company is killing its mobile software efforts and ending its investment in the Unity interface as a whole. Michael Hall, the developer's community manager, also confirmed to Ars Technica that Canonical is stopping all "work on the phone and tablet," putting an end on "the whole convergence story."

Now here's something you likely didn't expect at Microsoft's Build developer conference: A staple feature of Linux (and Unix) is coming to Windows 10. The company is integrating the Bash command-line shell and support for Ubuntu Linux binaries into Windows 10's Anniversary Update. This is, of course, big news for developers who want to use command-line tools while creating apps,but it's also important for power users who'd otherwise be tempted to install either third-party tools (like Cygwin) or a virtual machine.

If you've been talking a lot about using Ubuntu Linux away from your PC -- or using a mobile device as your PC -- you now get to put your money where your mouth is. BQ has started taking pre-orders for both the HD and full HD versions of the Aquarius M10, the first official Ubuntu tablet. Shell out a respective €259 ($289) or €299 ($335) and you'll get a 10-inch slate using Canonical's open source software, which can switch to a desktop PC mode when you attach an external display, keyboard and mouse.

Have you coveted the Skylake-powered version of Dell's near-borderless XPS 13 laptop, but wished it would ship with an open platform like Linux instead of Windows? Now's your chance. Dell has released a new version of its XPS 13 Developer Edition that comes with Ubuntu Linux 14.04 out of the box. You'll need a deep bank account to buy one right now, as your only current choices are high-end Core i7 models (with a quad HD+ touchscreen) that start at a lofty $1,550. You can finally get a Linux-based XPS 13 with 16GB of RAM, however, and there are promises of a far more frugal Core i5 system with 8GB of RAM and a non-touch display.

The last 12 months have been disastrous for the minor league of mobile operating systems. Jolla's Sailfish OS has started to capsize, while Blackberry has all but abandoned BlackBerry 10 for Android. Firefox OS, at least on phones, is but a few dying embers and Windows 10 Mobile has arrived with a muffled thud. Does Canonical and Ubuntu share the same fate? Perhaps, although the pair are fighting defiantly this month with a new flagship phone, courtesy of the Chinese manufacturer Meizu.

Once again, it's the Chinese smartphone manufacturer Meizu that's helping Canonical sell its vision of an Ubuntu handset. Following the MX4, the company has unwrapped the "Ubuntu Edition" Pro 5, which promises the best spec sheet in an Ubuntu phone to date. That is, without you installing the platform on another device manually, anyway. It's a large handset, dominated by a 5.7-inch AMOLED display (1080p) and a small fingerprint sensor. Under the hood is an eight-core Samsung Exynos 7420 processor, backed up by either 3GB or 4GB of RAM, which varies depending on whether you choose 32GB or 64GB of internal storage.

Remember that time Spanish device maker BQ started promoting a new, Ubuntu-powered tablet before Canonical was ready to start talking about it? Well, the Ubuntu developer finally decided to get chatty. As expected, the device is a Ubuntu-fied version of BQ's existing Aquaris M10 tablet, with just about everything from the 10.1-inch display to the quad-core MediaTek MT8163A chipset left unchanged. The biggest difference centers on what Canonical calls "Convergence" — the updated M10 is the first bit of consumer Ubuntu hardware that acts like a full-blown PC when you connect a keyboard, mouse and display to it.

Want to use your mobile device as a desktop, but would rather not go the Windows route? BQ might have just what you're looking for. The Spanish device maker is teasing the launch of an Ubuntu-based tablet that touts Convergence, a feature that turns your mobile Ubuntu gear into makeshift PCs. If you can scrounge up an external display, mouse and keyboard, you'll have your own little Linux workstation.

Security researchers have discovered a ludicrously simple way to hack into a number of Linux distributions: Just tap the backspace key 28 times in a row. A team from the Cybersecurity Group at Polytechnic University of Valencia (UPV) in Spain found that doing so for builds utilizing the ubiquitous Grub2 bootloader -- that's to say just about all of them -- immediately bypasses the lock screen, initiates the "Grub rescue shell" and grants the user access to the system for whatever nefarious things they have in mind.

If you were dismayed that Canonical's campaign to launch an Ubuntu-running smartphonecrashed and burned, then today might be your lucky day. Spanish smartphone maker BQ has already been selling two Ubuntu devices to Europeans but, from today, it's opening that offer out to everyone in the world. The Aquarius E5 HD and E4.5 both run the much-feted Linux-based operating system and are available for just €199 ($218) and €169 ($185), respectively.

The smartphone arena is dominated by two operating systems. Gartner's latest figures show that during the first three months of 2015, iOS and Android devices accounted for almost 97 percent of global smartphone sales. With established alternatives from Microsoft and BlackBerry already fighting for the leftovers, there doesn't seem to be a whole lot of opportunity for new players. Canonical, maker of the popular Linux distro Ubuntu, is taking on the challenge regardless. With a version of Ubuntu built specifically for mobile, it's hoping to shake up the current duopoly with a fresh approach to content consumption. That's the plan, anyway, but after spending some time getting to know the OS, it's clear Canonical has a lot of work to do if Ubuntu Phone is ever going to be a viable option for even casual smartphone users.

Another Ubuntu phone, another unusual launch. After the BQ Aquaris E4.5, which debuted with a series of online flash sales, Canonical is following up with an invite-only handset built by Meizu. Yep, the same Meizu that once hoped to release an Ubuntu phone in 2014. The new MX4 "Ubuntu Edition" has been available to developers in China since May, but starting tomorrow you'll be able to order one in Europe too. At least, you will if you're lucky enough to receive an invite. Canonical and Meizu aren't revealing how many will be available each day, so you'll just have to visit their teaser site, complete the "origami wall" and hope for the best. The company is also staying tight-lipped about whether the invite system will eventually be dropped and if the MX4 will later be sold in other markets.

Today's release of Ubuntu 15.04 is yet another installment in the slow and steady march forward from Canonical. The company knows that not every OS release needs to be accompanied by fanfare and dramatic changes to your desktop. And this edition of the popular Linux distro perfectly epitomizes that philosophy. There are basically zero user-facing interface changes, except for the ability to set application menus to always show, instead of only popping up when you mouse over them. Otherwise most of the changes are under the hood. The OS should be faster and more stable, thanks to updates to updates to the underlying system, like the Unity desktop and Linux kernel. The default apps also got some minor version bumps, including Firefox and LibreOffice.

The nearly bezel-less Dell XPS 13 is one of our highest rated laptops, thanks namely to its compact size, attractive design and fast performance. But if Windows just isn't your preferred operating system, now there's another option to choose from: Linux. As part of its commitment to the platform, which took off with the introduction of Project Sputnik, Dell's announced a Ubuntu-based developer edition of its sleek 13-inch laptop. Naturally, you'll have a myriad of configurations to choose from, with prices ranging from $949 all the way to $1,849, depending on how specced out you want your Linux machine to be.

At long last, the first Ubuntu phones are here. It's been more than two years since Canonical first showed off its Linux-based mobile platform, and fans have been clamoring for consumer devices ever since. The Ubuntu Edge never made its ambitious $32 million crowdfunding target, and the first handsets from BQ and Meizu were delayed last year. But finally, it's all starting to come together. BQ has started selling its "Aquaris E4.5 Ubuntu Edition" in Europe and Meizu shouldn't be too far behind with its modified MX4.

Dr. Mark Dean helped design the first PC during his career at IBM and shares his thoughts on the future of the desktop computer. Meanwhile, Katy Perry's lawyers go after Left Shark impostors and students in Singapore make a 3D-printed solar powered car. Get all of today's top stories in the Daily Roundup.

It's been a long time coming, but finally Canonical is ready to release its first Ubuntu phone. After teaming up with Meizu and BQ almost a year ago, we're getting a (sort of) new handset from the latter; it's actually a repurposed version of its Aquaris E4.5, a mid-range smartphone that normally ships with Android. The new "Ubuntu Edition" keeps all of the same hardware, which is nothing to write home about. It has a 4.5-inch, 540x960 resolution display, a 1.3GHz quad-core MediaTek Cortex A7 processor, 1GB of RAM and 8GB of internal storage. For shutterbugs, there's also a 8-megapixel rear-facing camera and a 5-megapixel snapper on the front. At €169.90 ($195), the specs are pretty unremarkable.

Ubuntu Linux has spread to quitea few platforms in its 10-year history, if not always successfully. Today, though, the open source software is tackling what could be its greatest challenge yet: the internet of things. Canonical has released a version of its stripped-down snappy Ubuntu Core for connected devices like home appliances, robots and anything else where a conventional PC operating system wouldn't fly. It's designed to run on modest hardware (a 600MHz processor will do) and provide easy updates, all the while giving gadget makers the freedom to customize the software for whatever they're building. It promises to be extra-reliable, too -- it only applies updates if the code checks out, so you won't lose control of your smart thermostat due to a buggy upgrade.

You can already run a conventional operating system like Linux on your Chromebook if you're the determined sort, but it's not really convenient... not unless you like hopping between virtual terminals, anyway. However, there's now a relatively simple way to juggle between Chrome OS and Linux. If you grab a tweaked version of David Schneider's Crouton extension and type in a terminal command, you can now run a version of Linux (so far, Debian and Ubuntu) in a window. You won't have to drop that Hangouts chat just to finish some work in OpenOffice, in other words. While you'll still have to be comfortable with installing Linux in the first place, this could easily turn your cheap web surfing machine into more of a power user's tool.

Don't look now, but one of the staples of the open source world just marked a big birthday. Canonical has released Ubuntu 14.10, officially making this friendlier Linux distribution 10 years old. The company is clearly happy with a low-key celebration; 14.10's biggest addition is a developer tool center that makes it easier to write Android apps, while you'll also find support for zero-setup printers and 64-bit ARM chips. Not exactly riveting stuff, is it? Still, the release shows how far Ubuntu has come -- while there have been some roughpatches in the last decade, the Canonical team can now focus most of its energy on refining a successful formula.

We told you it was coming, and now it's here! Canonical announced today that its popular Linux distro Ubuntu now supports Netflix playback through Chrome. If you're running a fully updated install of Ubuntu 12.04 LTS, 14.04 LTS or later you can simply go install Chrome 37 right now and immediately start enjoying Netflix. (Provided you're a paying subscriber, of course.) There's no word on if or when support might be coming to other browsers, so sorry Firefox fans. That being said, Mozilla is one of the main contributors to Network Security Services, which is key to Netflix support on Linux, so it probably won't be too far behind.

Linux users, you've been very, very, very, very, very, very patient. And now, your patience is being rewarded with Netflix support on your OS of choice. For the longest time Netflix relied on Microsoft's would-be Flash competitor Silverlight. But, of course, support for the plug in was practically non-existent on the open-source OS. Now, with Silverlight fading, and Netflix embracing the power of HTML5, your wish of watching flicks in your favorite distro (be it Ubuntu, Mint or Arch) may finally come true. Paul Adolph from Netflix posted a message to Ubuntu developers, telling them that, "Netflix will play with Chrome stable in 14.02 if NSS version 3.16.2 or greater is installed."